Lee Approves 'Three Judicial Laws', 'Jeonnam-Gwangju Integration Act', and 'Third Commercial Act Amendment'... No Veto Exercised

President Lee Jaemyung Presides Over Extraordinary Cabinet Meeting on March 5

President Lee Jae-myung is speaking at the Cabinet meeting held at the Blue House on the 5th to discuss measures in response to the Middle East situation. Photo by Yonhap News

On March 5, the government approved the three judicial bills (the Crime of Distorting the Law Act, the Judicial Review System Act, and the Supreme Court Justice Expansion Act), the Special Act on the Administrative Integration of Jeonnam and Gwangju, and the third amendment to the Commercial Act at the Cabinet meeting.

The government passed the amendments to the Criminal Act, Court Organization Act, and Constitutional Court Act, the Special Act for the Establishment of Jeonnam-Gwangju Integrated Special City, the amendment to the Local Autonomy Act, and the amendment to the Commercial Act through an extraordinary Cabinet meeting presided over by President Lee Jaemyung at the Blue House on the morning of the same day.

The three judicial bills consist of: the amendment to the Court Organization Act (the Supreme Court Justice Expansion Act), which increases the number of Supreme Court justices including the Chief Justice from 14 to 26; the amendment to the Constitutional Court Act (the Judicial Review System Act), which allows final decisions of the Supreme Court to be appealed to the Constitutional Court; and the amendment to the Criminal Act (the Crime of Distorting the Law Act), which punishes judges and prosecutors who distort the law.

The People Power Party called on President Lee to exercise his right to request reconsideration (veto) of the three judicial bills, but they passed in their original form.

The Supreme Court Justice Expansion Act will take effect two years after promulgation, while the Crime of Distorting the Law Act and the Judicial Review System Act went into effect immediately upon promulgation.

The Special Act for the Establishment of Jeonnam-Gwangju Integrated Special City, designed to integrate Jeonnam Province and Gwangju City, also passed the Cabinet meeting. Alongside this, the amendment to the Local Autonomy Act, which adds the integrated special city as a new category of local government, was also approved in its original form.

The Commercial Act amendment passed on this day mandates companies to retire their treasury shares. Under the amendment, if a company does not retire its treasury shares within one year without the approval of the general meeting of shareholders, it will be fined up to 50 million won. For treasury shares already held, there is a six-month grace period, after which companies must retire them within one year and six months.

Additionally, an amendment to the National Referendum Act guaranteeing overseas Koreans the right to vote in national referendums was approved at the Cabinet meeting.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.